Former Shehu Sani, who represented Kaduna Central in the National Assembly, has said that electronic transmission of election results alone cannot guarantee free and fair elections in Nigeria.
Speaking on Sunrise Daily on Channels Television, Sani argued that while electronic transmission may improve transparency, it does not completely eliminate the possibility of electoral malpractice.
His comments followed the Senate’s approval of electronic transmission of results while retaining manual collation as a backup.
According to Sani, electronic transfer does not automatically translate into 100 percent free and fair elections. He noted that there is no electoral system that those determined to rig cannot attempt to manipulate.
He said: “Electronic transfer does not mean that we’re going to have 100% free and fair elections. There is no electoral system that those who intend to rig would not be able to circumvent. Now you have a manual voting and electronic transfer of results. So everywhere you go, if the nation is interested in organizing free, fair and credible elections, it will hold and if there is the intent and practice of manipulation, whatever you do they will find a way to rig it. For example, now, you can have laws everywhere that voters should not be induced with money or anything material for them to vote, they will still do that and we don’t have the manpower to go to every nook and cranny to make sure people are not being induced.”
Sani stressed that the credibility of elections depends largely on integrity, enforcement of laws, and political will rather than solely on the technology used for transmitting results.
